Air conditioning



Feb. 151935.

w. RAPP AIR CONDITIONING Filed April 6, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheeft. 1

JNVENT v i? ATTORNEY- Feb. 12, 1935. W. E. RAPP Ail 1R CONDITIONING 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed A rils, 1952 INVE TOR- .444. ATTORNEY- Feb. 12, 1935. E, RAPP 1,990,753

AIR QONDITIONING Filed April 6, 1932 4'Sheets-Shet 5 mv ToR- Feb. 12, 1935. W. E. RAPP 1,990,753,

' I AIR CONDITIONING Filed April 6, 1932 4 Sheets- Shed. 4

/ III IIH L I w I v ATTORNEY- Patented Feb. 12, 1935 PATENT OFFICE AIR CONDITIONING Walter E. Rapp, New York, N. Y. Application April 6, 1932, Serial No. 603,673

.15 Claims.

My invention relates to processes and devices for the conditioningand'circulating of air, and refers particularly, but not exclusively, to processes and devices adapted for the conditioning of air and its circulation through cars and similar movable conveyances and containers. 7

The annoyance, inconvenience and danger to health incident to the direct introduction of exterior air into and through moving passenger cars has long been recognized, and numerous attempts have been made to eliminate, or 'diminish, these objectionable and dangerous conditions. i

Among the conditions necessary for the proper maintenance of health and comfort of human beings, confined in a room, or chamber, the following may be mentionedz-The air must be free from obnoxious odors and injurious gaseous contents, it must be clean, that is, free from dust and other solid materials in order that they may not be inhaled; the supply of fresh air must be ,of continued consistent quality in.or-. der to maintain health and comfort giving properties; the velocity of the air current must be of reasonable motion in order to avoid draughts; the quantity of air supplied for consumption must be sufiicient to supply the health needs of the passengers, the air must be withdrawn at a velocity and in quantity corresponding to the velocity and quantity of supplied air; themeans for the supply of fresh air and those for the withdrawal of the. vitiated air must be suchthat there is'as little intermixture'of the two air masses as is possible; the air must be of proper humidity content for thecomfort of the passengers and the protectionof their respiratory tracts; and the airmust be of reasonable' temperature for the comfort and health of the passengers. 4

While it is physically and mechanically impossible to respond to all of the aforementioned conditions with absolute perfectness, I believe that the process and devices of my invention accomplish them more accurately, practically, economically and with more practical automatic control than any of the processes and devices previously proposed for the accomplishment of the described desirable results.

In the accompanying description of my process for air conditioning and circulation and of my devices particularly adapted therefor, I refer specifically to their application to passenger cars, but I do not by any 'means limit myself to' such conveyances, as it is evident that my invention has much broader applications and In the accompanying drawings, illustrating one form of the device of my invention installed within a railway passenger car, similar parts are designated by similar numerals.

'Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the line 1 1 of Figure 2.

' Figure 2 is a top view of a railway car installed with my device partly broken away for clearness of description.

Figure 3 is a section on the line 33 of Figure 2.

Figure 4'is a section .on the line H of Figure 2.

Figure 5 is an enlarged section on the lin 55 of Figure, 4.

Figure 6 is a section through the line 6-6 of Figure 4. I

Figure is a section through the line 77. of Figure 4.

The accompanying illustrations show two units of the device of my invention, the units being positioned at the two ends' of the car, andfor clearness of description and to prevent confusion, I will describe one of the units, the corresponding elements of the other unit being indicated by corresponding prime numerals.

The car which is shown diagrammatically, as it is no part of my invention, is supposed to be moving in the direction of the arrow A.

Positioned. partly above and partly below the roof 10 of the car, as shown specifically in Figure 1 is an air collecting and dust and water eliminating device consisting of a chamber formed by the annular wall 11, the cover 12 and the downwardly and inwardly sloping conical bottom 13. .A conduit 14 is connected with an openingin the bottom 13 and extends. downwardly through the body of the car and outwardly through the car bottom 15. 1

An interior wall 16, spaced from the outer wall 11, commences at the line 17, extends somewhat more than three-quarters around the chamber and then extends outwardly as at 18,- the extremity 19 being positioned toward the end of the car and above the -car vestibule. An air entrance cdnduit is formed bythe wall 18,

the wall 20 which extends from the point 21 to ally attached to the wall 20 at 28. A spring 29 of predetermined resiliency is attached to the plate 26 and the wall 20. An opening 30 is positioned in the wall 20 between the pivotal point 28 and the entrance of the air entrance conduit.

A subsidiary air entrance conduit is formed by the extension 31 of'the wall 11, the top 32, the bottom 33, the wall 34 extending outwardly from the point 21 and the end 35. A funnellike air catching device 36, open' at both ends, admits air into the subsidiary air entrance above described. An electrically controlled suction fan, or blower 37, operates to draw air into and through the subsidiary air entrance conduit.

An air controlled valve 38 is pivotally attached at 21 and is capable of completely closing either the air entrance conduit or the subsidiary air entrance conduit.

An electric circuit 39 energized by the battery 40 is connected to the motor 41, operating the fan 37, and to the switch 42 which is operated by the closure element 25.

A downwardly directed conical-shaped .false bottom 43 is connected to the wall 16 and has an opening 44 in its bottom portion connected to the pipe 45, the lower end of which is within the upper portion of the pipe 14.

A conduit 46 is connected to an opening 4'! in the central portion of the top 12.

The operation of the above described element of the device of my invention is as follows:-

The spring 29 is of such tension that the valve 25, 26, 27 is in the position shown in dotted lines in Figure'5 and not in contact with the switch 42 when the desired amount of air per minute is admitted to the air entrance conduit. For purposes of explanation, it is assumed that the desired amount of air is admitted when the car is moving at the rate of 15 miles per hour. It is evident, therefore, that as long as the speed is thus maintained the opening in the air entrance conduit will be positioned'for the admission of the desired amount of air per minute. If the speed of the car increases, the increased amount of air thus forced into the entrance of air entrance conduit will be impinged upon the member 26 of the valve, overcoming the natural tension of the spring 29 and causing the valve to move, reducing the area of the entrance, for instance into the position shown in full lines in Figure 5, thus maintaining a constant amount of air admission. If, however, the speed of the car is decreased below 15 miles per hour, the spring 29 will draw.

the valve downwardly against the switch 42 energizing the electric circuit 39, causing the' no air is supplied by the air entranceconduit, the required amount will be supplied by the subsidiary air entrance conduit.

It will thus be seen that a constant amount of air is supplied irrespective of 'the speed of movement of the car as well as when it is stationary.

The air thus forced into the device passes in the direction of the arrow with centrifugal movement through the conduit'48 between the walls 11 and 16, through the opening beyond the wall extremity 17 into the central chamber 49 and thence outwardly through the conduit 46.

This centrifugal movement of the air throws out the heavier particles of dirt and impurities which pass through the space 50 between the bottom 13 and the false bottom 43 and thence outwardly through the pipe 14.

The air as it passes through the central chamber 49 is cooled and de-humidified by means of a refrigerating device, which consists of a refrigerating plant 51, of any suitable character, the refrigerating liquid passing through the supply pipe 52 into the annular headers 53 and 54, which in turn are connected to a plurality of worm pipes 55, 55 and thence to the plant 51.

The air flowing through the conduit 46 passes through a cloth screen 56, to remove the finer dust and solid impurities, thence through the heating device 57 and thence over the deflectors 58, 58 and through the grill 59, positioned in the upper portion of the car, into the car proper. The desired temperature of the air may be obtained and retained by themostatic control for cooling or heating.

The moisture removed from the air by the cooling device falls downwardly through the pipes 45 and 14.

It will thus be seen that a constant quantity of air is cleansed of all dust and solid impurities, is de-humidified, cooled or heated to a desired temperature before introduction into the car proper and that these conditions are maintained irrespective of the speedof motion of the car.

Positioned at each end of the car are two exhaust pipes 60, 60 extending from above the car roof 10 to the lower portion of the car proper, and having openings 61 and- 62 therein.

The exhaust pipe 60 has a revoluble funnel 63 carried by its upper extremity, said funnel having a wing 64 whereby the opening of the funnel will always be in a reverse direction to the movement of the car. The pipes 60 and 60' have automatically controlled valves whereby the pipe at the rearward end of the car is open and the pipe at the forward end of the car is closed. This is accomplished by means of two semi-circular closure members, one attached to the pipe and the other to the funnel, so positioned that they may be operated by the movement of the funnel to either open or close the pipe. This is shown particularly in Figures 6 and '7. Figure 6 illustrates the position of these elements in the forward end of the car andin which the shutter 65 is carried by the funnel, and the shutter 66 is carried by the pipe and the pipe is closed. In Figure '7, the shutter 65 is positioned above the shutter 66', as shown in Figure d and the pipe is open at the space 67'."

The air, therefore, entering the car through the grill 59 passes the length of the car through the openings 61' and 62' and outwardly through the pipe 60', a suction being caused by the funnel 63.

The pipes 68 and 69, Figure 2, illustrate the movement of the refrigerating liquid from the plant 51to the device in the other end of the car, the flow being controlled by the valves '70 and 71. I

It is to be noted that a novel and valuable feature ofmy invention is that the air is automatically introduced into theforward portion of the car and withdrawn from the rearward portion of the car irrespective of the direction of movement of the car and that the amount of air introduced per unit of time is the same when the car is moving in either direction and when it is stationary, a most necessary and ad'- vantageous attribute of devices adapted for the health and comfort of the passengers.

By conditioned air, I mean air which-has been submitted to any or all of the processes of removing solid contents, producing a desired degree of humidity and producing a desired de-' gree of temperature.

I do not limit myself to the particular size, shape, number, arrangement, construction or applicationof the elements of my invention or the number or order of steps of procedure as particularly shown and described, as these are given simply as a means for clearly describing my invention/ What I claim is:

1. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a moving chamber,- in combination, pressure valve means adapted for automatically introducing a definite quantity of conditioned air into the forward portion of said chamber by means of the movement of said chamber, during boththe forward and backward direction of movement of said chamber; and means adapted for automatically withdrawing air from the rearward portion of said chamber by means of the movement of said chamber, during both the forward and backward movement of said chamber.

2. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a moving chamber, in combination, pressure.

valve means adapted for automatically introducing a definite quantity of conditioned air into the forward portion of said chamber by means of the movement of said chamber, during both the forward and backward direction of movement of-said chamber; means adapted for automatically withdrawingair from the rearward portion of said chamber by means of the movement of said chamber, during both the forward and backward movement of said chamber, and independent automatically acting means adapted for the introduction of air into the forward portion of said chamber irrespective ofa moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit positioned in an end portion of said chamber connecting conditioning means. with the exterior .air; conditioning means; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior end of said conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed toward said chamber end; means for automatically controlling and regulating the amount of air per unit of time introduced into said entrance conduit; and an exit conduit positioned in and connecting the other end portion of said chamber with the exterior air.

4. In a device adaptedfor the ventilation of of a moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit positioned in each end portion of said chamber connecting conditioning means with the exterior air; conditioning-means; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior end of saidconduit, said funnelbeing fixedly directed toward said chamber end; an exit conduit positioned in each said chamber end portions connecting said chamber with the exterior air; a revoluble funnel carried by the exterior p'ortion of each said exit conduits, and means whereby the revolution of said exit funnel will open and close said exit conduit.

5. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit positioned in each end portion of said chamber connecting conditioning means with. the exterior air; conditioning means; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior end of said conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed toward said chamber end; means for automatically controlling and regulating the amount of air per unit of time introduced into said entrance conduit; an exit conduit positioned in each said chamber end portions connecting said chamber with the exterior air; a revoluble funnel carried by the exterior portion of each said exit conduits. and means whereby the revolution of said exit funnel will open and close said exit conduit.

6. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit connecting an auxiliary chamber in each end of said chamber with the exterior air; an auxiliary chamber; means within said auxiliary chamber adapted to remove the heavier solid particles from introduced air; means for conducting the thus purified air into said chamber; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior portion ,of said entrance conduit, said funnel being fixedlydirected toward said chamber end; an exit conduit connecting each said end portions of said chamber with. the exterior air, a revoluble funnel carried by the exterior portion of each said exit conduits, means whereby said exit conduit will be open when said exit funnel is directed in the same direction as is the chamber end upon which it is positioned and means whereby said heavier solid particles from introduced air;

means adapted for otherwise conditioning said introduced-air; means for conducting the thus purified air into said chamber; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior portion of said entrance conduit, said funnelbeingfixedly directed toward said chamber end; an exit conduit connecting each said end portions of said chamber with the exterior air, a revoluble funnel carried by the exterior portion of each said exit conduits, means whereby said exit conduit will be open when said exit funnel is directed in the same direction as is the chamber end upon which it is positioned and means whereby said exit conduit will be closed when said exit funnel is directed in the same direction as is the chamber and other than that upon which it is positioned. 1 8. In a device adapted for'the ventilation of a moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit connecting an auxiliary chamber in' an end of said chamber with the exterior air;- an auxiliarychamber; means within said auxiliary chamber adapted to remove the heavier solid particles from introduced air; means for conducting the thus purifled air into said chamber;

a-funnel fixedly attached to the exterior portion continuous introduction of a definite amount of air per unit of time; and an exit conduit connecting said end portion of said chamber with the exterior air.

9. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a movable chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit positioned in an end portion of said chamber connecting conditioning means with the exterior air; conditioning means, a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior end of said conduit; said funnel being fixedly directed toward said chamber end; means for automatically controlling and regulating the amount of air per unit of time introduced into said entrance conduit; an exit conduit positioned in and connecting the other end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; and independent automatically acting means adapted for the introduction of air into the forward portion of said chamber irre- Spective of movement of said chamber.

10. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a forwardly moving chamber, in combination. an entrance conduit opening into an end portion of said chamber connecting conditioning means with the exterior air; conditioning means; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior end of said conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed forwardly of said chamber; an exit conduit connecting the other end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; a revoluble exit funnel carried by the exterior portion of said exit conduit, and means whereby the revolution of said exit funnel will open said exit conduit when said chamber moves forwardly and will close said exit conduit upon backward movement of said chamber. 7

11. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a forwardly moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit connectingan auxiliary chamber opening into the forward end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; an auxiliary chamber; means within said auxiliary chamber adapted to remove the heavier solid particles from introduced air; means for conducting the thus purified air into the forward end of said chamber; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior portion of said entrance conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed forwardly of said chamber; an exit conduit connecting the rear end portion of said chamber withthe exterior air, a revoluble exit funnel carried by the exterior portion of said exit conduit, means whereby said exit conduit will be open when said exit funnel is directed. rearwardly of said chamber, and means wherebysaid exit conduit will be closed when said exit funnel is directed forwardly of said chamber.

12. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a forwardly moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit connecting an auxiliary chamber opening into the forward end portion-of said chamber with the exterior air; an auxiliary chamber; means within said auxiliary chamber adapted to remove the heavier solid particles from introduced air; means adapted for otherwise conditioning said introduced air; means for conducting the thus purified air into the forward end of said chamber; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior portion of said entrance conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed forwardly of said chamber; an exit conduit connecting the rear end portion of said chamber with the ex terior air, arevoluble exit funnel carried b'y-the exterior portion of said exit conduit, means whereby saidexit conduit will be open when said exit funnel is directed rearwardly of said chamber, and means whereby said exit conduit will be closed when said exit funnel is directed forwardly of said chamber.

13. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a movable chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit opening into the forward end portion of said chamber connecting conditioning means with the exterior air; conditioning means; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior end of said conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed forwardly of said chamber; an exit conduit positioned in and connecting the rear end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; a revoluble exit funnel carried by the exterior portion of said exit conduit, means whereby the revolution of said exit funnel will open said exit conduit when said chamber moves forwardly and will close said exit conduit upon rearward movement of said chamber, and independent automatically acting means adapted for the introduction of air into the forward portion of said chamber irrespective of movement of said chamber.

14. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a'forwardly moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit connecting an auxiliary chamber opening into the forward end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; an auxiliary chamber; means within said auxiliary chamber adapted to remove the heavier solid particles from introduced air; means for conducting the thus purified air into the forward end of said chamber; a funnel fixedlyattached to the exterior portion of said entrance conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed forwardly of said chamber; an exit conduit connecting the rear end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; a revoluble exit funnel carried by the exterior portion of said exit conduit, means whereby said exit conduit will be open when said exit funnel is directed rearwardly of said chamber, means whereby said exit conduit will be closed when said exit funnel is directed forwardly of said chamber, and independent automatically acting means adapted for the introduction or air into the forward portion of said chamber irrespective of movement of said chamber.

15. In a device adapted for the ventilation of a forwardly moving chamber, in combination, an entrance conduit connecting an auxiliary chamber opening into the forward end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; an auxiliary chamber; means within said auxiliary chamber adapted to remove the heavier solid particles from introduced air; means adapted for otherwise conditioning said introduced air; means for conducting the thus purified air into the forward end of said chamber; a funnel fixedly attached to the exterior portion of said entrance conduit, said funnel being fixedly directed forwardly of said chamber; an exit conduit connecting the rear end portion of said chamber with the exterior air; a revoluble exit funnel carried by the exterior portion of said exit conduit, means whereby said exit conduit will be open when said exit funnel is directed rearwardly of said chamber, means whereby said exit conduit will be. closed when said exit funnel is directed forwardly of said chamber, and inde-' pendent automatically acting means adapted for the introduction of air into the forward portion of said chamber irrespective of movement of said chamber.

WAL'IER E. RAPP. 

